When Scunthorpe United released their retained list on Friday there were not too many raised eyebrows.

Neal Bishop had already announced he was leaving the club and there could not be many arguments with the decisions to let Andrew Crofts, Jonathon Margetts and Luke Williams leave the club.

The only decision that may have raised an eyebrow or two was letting Tom Hopper leave.

But for all the hard work Hopper does, which he is to be commended for, his strike rate, even by his own admission, will be not be as high as people hoped, which could have been a factor in the decision.

But the most important decisions in terms of the future of the club was to keep hold of Duane Holmes and Conor Townsend.

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These two have been a couple of the stand out performers this season and they had to be tied down as soon as possible.

Scunthorpe have done exactly that, which will give them more than a solid base to build from next season, and have even started discussions to keep at the club beyond the end of next season.

This is a very smart move as both are extremely important members of the squad and are capable of playing at a higher level – and they are key to trying to help Scunthorpe get there.

Nick Daws, who has said along with Andy Dawson, that they have taken up the managerial positions offered to them, said tying the duo down to contracts was important.

“They have played their best football consistently,” Daws told BBC Radio Humberside. “They have both played a big part in the last couple of months.

“It was important we acted on behalf of club to secure their immediate future and we have set the wheels in motion to have them remain beyond the end of next season.”

That is a big statement of intent from the Iron and will not leave fans worrying about where their star performers will be next season.

There will of course be speculation about some of Scunthorpe’s players who are not out of contract but to have players of the calibre of Holmes and Townsend under contract is a very good base to have.

It means one position Daws will not have to worry about next season is left back with an option exercised on Lewis Butroid’s contract, and again talks have already begun to keep him at Glanford Park longer.

Butroid, for all his inexperience, did not look out of place when replacing Townsend earlier in the season and some would say he was unlucky to lose his place in the side.

He has a big future ahead of him, which is why the club will be keen to keep him at the club longer.

“Lewis has got a big future and he got more game time than he expected when Conor got his injury,” Daws said. “He stepped up to the plate and did exceptionally well.

“It looked like he had been in the team for years and he has a really bright future.

“He has been at the football club a long time and hopefully he will still be with us for a long time.

“We have two left backs in Conor and Lewis who have the ability which is great for me. That is one area we won’t need to strengthen.”

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Hopper has spent three seasons at Scunthorpe and as mentioned previously has been commended for his work rate and how he can bring others into play.

However, that can only get you so far and ultimately strikers will be judged on goals.

Hopper has only managed nine this season, and seven in the league, and someone of Hopper’s quality should be at least in double figures.

In those three seasons he has netted 23 in all competitions, an average of less than eight a season.

Hopper was the subject of interest at the start of the season, but decided to stay and fight for his place and he must be praised for that.

Throughout the season he showed flashes of what he was capable of, such as netting twice against Wigan, but did not do it enough on a consistent basis and he struggled to make the starting XI in the final few weeks of the season.

Many will be sad to see him go as they have seen Hopper develop as a player and a person over the three years and he should not have a problem finding employment elsewhere.

“With Tom it was a culmination of a lot of things in the last 12 months,” Daws told the radio.

“We had discussions between all the parties and mutually agreed it was the best time for Tom to move on to pastures new and fulfil, from his point of view, his potential.

“I had a good chat with him on Friday and the club spoke to him and we reached a point where we decided Tom’s future lies elsewhere.

“He had some fantastic times here but he has his own career to look at and I’m sure he will get fixed up pretty quickly.”

Tom Hopper Picture: Damon Campion

The others that were less of a surprise were Williams and Margetts.

Both have struggled with injuries this season, with the pair hardly featuring.

Margetts has missed the whole of the season and struggled to make an impact with Scunthorpe.

There was no doubting the quality of Williams and he showed that at times but his injury record spoke for itself and you could no say with any certainty how much he would play.

The only argument you could have made for Williams staying was to offer him a pay as you play deal.

Andrew Crofts and Jack Dyche were the others not to be offered deals but neither had a consistent run in the first team so it was no surprise to see them depart.

With Hopper leaving and Ivan Toney re-joining his parent club Newcastle United, Scunthorpe are left with Lee Novak as their only recognised striker on their books.

That is obviously the position that needs strengthening the most during the summer, with at least two proven strikers needed, and ones that will be able to hit double figures.

Toney could be one of those strikers, if he can be persuaded to move to Glanford Park, as he has proved he can hit the target on a regular basis – eight goals in 13 starts is a very good return.

Surely his chances will be limited at Newcastle and he seems to have enjoyed his time at Glanford Park both this season and last.

Toney was the top scoring striker at United, despite only being at Glanford Park half a season, with midfielders Duane Holmes and Josh Morris top of the scoring charts with 12 and nine respectively.

Whatever the outcome we are sure to be in for a very interesting summer at Glanford Park.